NetApp Buys Kubernetes Service Provider

Hybrid cloud specialist NetApp claims to have pulled together the components for a multi-cloud application container orchestration platform with its acquisition of StackPointCloud, developer of a Kubernetes cluster orchestration service for multiple clouds.

The acquisition announced Tuesday (Sept. 18) is the latest example of how IT vendors are embracing Kubernetes container orchestration services as more enterprises hedge their bets with multi-cloud strategies. NetApp, Sunnyvale, Calif., gains a Kubernetes service platform to support the application orchestration framework of its Data Fabric platform.

That combination, NetApp said, would enable multi-cloud application orchestration with persistent storage for stateful applications. The result will be a multi-cloud control plane with cloud volumes that supports DevOps teams hustling to push distributed apps out the door. The new tools also would ease data and application management across multiple clouds, the company added.

Terms of the purchase of Seattle-based StackPointCloud were not disclosed. NetApp did say the new unit’s tools would be available now as part of its expanded Kubernetes service for deploying and managing clusters and containers across multiple clouds.

“This acquisition will benefit customers looking to simplify the delivery of data and applications in clouds, across clouds and hybrid clouds,” said Anthony Lye, general manager of NetApp’s Cloud Data Services business unit.

NetApp is positioning the Kubernetes service as among the first Kubernetes platforms for multi-cloud deployments and as a cloud-based stack for Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure as well as its own hyper-converged infrastructure.

Along with acquiring intellectual property related to container orchestration, NetApp said the purchase of StackPointCloud gives it a greater presence in Kubernetes and other open source DevOps communities, including Istio. The latter is a “service mesh” intended to connect application components and thereby boost the capabilities of the Kubernetes cluster orchestrator.

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George Leopold has written about science and technology for more than 30 years, focusing on electronics and aerospace technology. He previously served as executive editor of Electronic Engineering Times. Leopold is the author of "Calculated Risk: The Supersonic Life and Times of Gus Grissom" (Purdue University Press, 2016).